Bowling Green State University Athletics
Falcons Head to Northern Illinois for Tuesday Tilt
February 28, 2005 | Women's Basketball
Feb. 28, 2005
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GAME #27
BGSU
at
NORTHERN ILLINOIS
Tuesday, March 1, 2005
7:05 p.m. CST
Convocation Center (9,100)
DeKalb, Ill.
RADIO: WBGU-FM (88.1) - Brian George and Chris Schieman
SERIES: NIU leads, 12-11
LAST MEETING: at BGSU 80, Northern Illinois 44 (Feb. 2, 2005)
The Bowling Green State University women's basketball team, having clinched a share of the Mid-American Conference's West Division title, now looks to end the regular season with a win and an outright divisional crown ... the Falcons (19-7, 12-3 MAC) of fourth-year head coach Curt Miller head to the MAC's 'West Coast' for a Tuesday (March 1) game vs. Northern Illinois University ... tipoff is set for 7:05 p.m. locally (8:05 Eastern) at NIU's Convocation Center (9,100) ... then, the Falcons will head to the Kraft MAC Tournament ... BGSU has earned a bye for the first round, and will play a quarterfinal game at Cleveland's Gund Arena on Wednesday, March 9.
LOOKING OUT FOR NUMBER ONE (SEED)
After picking up a 72-71 win over arch-rival Toledo Saturday afternoon (Feb. 26), the Falcons have clinched at least a tie for first place in the MAC's West Division ... the title is BGSU's first league crown of any kind since the 1993-94 team won both the MAC regular-season and tournament titles ... this year's BGSU team can finish no worse than the third seed for the Kraft MAC Tournament, and BG has earned a first-round bye for the first time since the MAC went to the current tourney format in the 1999-2000 season ... the Falcons need a win at NIU to clinch the West Division outright, along with the tourney's #1 seed.
MAC TOURNAMENT OVERVIEW
The top-three seeds in the conference tourney earn first-round byes, with the division winners earning the first and second seeds ... the remaining team with the best record earns the third seed and the final first-round bye, with seeds four through eight hosting first-round games on March 5 ... the five first-round winners join the top-three teams in Cleveland for the quarterfinals (March 9).
TIEBREAKERS?
In a worst-case scenario, the Falcons could finish in a four-way tie for the MAC's top record ... should BG lose at NIU, and Kent State, Eastern Michigan and Marshall all win their Tuesday games, all four teams would finish with identical league marks of 12-4 ... in such a case, KSU would be the number-one seed, with EMU second, BGSU third and Marshall the fourth seed.
POINTS OF PRIDE
GREAT START
The Falcons, obviously, have had a successful season to date ... BGSU is 19-7 overall and 12-3 in MAC play, two games ahead of last year's pace in each case ... last winter, BGSU went 17-9 through the first 26 games, and the Falcons were 10-5 after 15 conference contests ... BG's 2004-05 overall record is the team's best since the 1997-98 squad was 20-6 after 26 games ... the Falcons' MAC record is the best since that '97-98 team went 13-2 to start league play.
FALCONS IN THE RPI
Bowling Green is currently ranked 76th and 77th in two of the most up-to-date Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) related polls ... BGSU is the top-ranked team among MAC schools on at least three lists.
ABOUT THE FALCONS
The Falcons take an overall record of 19-7 into Tuesday's game, and BGSU is 12-3 in MAC play, atop the league's West Division ... BG went 7-1 in the month of February, and the Falcons have clinched a tie for the West Division title ... the Falcons' only February loss came at Eastern Michigan, 57-52 (Feb. 19), snapping a streak of five consecutive wins to begin the month ... but, BG bounced back with home wins over East Division-leading Marshall (73-62, Feb. 23) and arch-rival Toledo (72-71, Feb. 26) ... BG has won 10 of the last 12 games and 16 of 19 contests ... the team's other MAC losses came at Kent State, 62-53 on Jan. 26, and in the first EMU meeting, 51-48 on Jan. 12 ... BGSU finished the non-conference portion of the schedule with a 7-4 mark for the third consecutive season.
BGSU is averaging 70.3 points per game, ranking second in the MAC and 39th in the country ... the Falcons are 55th in the nation in scoring margin, and currently have four players -- three sophomores and a freshman -- with double-digit scoring averages ... soph Liz Honegger paces the Brown and Orange in scoring (14.3 ppg), and also leads the team in rebounding (7.8), steals (2.0) and blocks (1.9) ... classmate Ali Mann has 13.8 points and 7.7 boards per game to rank second on the team in each category, while another soph, Carin Horne, has 11.7 points per outing ... freshman Kate Achter is averaging 10.3 points and a team-high 3.9 assists per game, and is third on the team with 4.1 rebounds ... redshirt junior Casey McDowell has 5.5 points per contest, while sophomore Megan Thorburn averages 3.9 points ... Honegger and Mann are the only players to have started all 26 games this year, while McDowell has made 25 starts and Achter 19 ... Horne has started 16 games and Thorburn 10 ... Achter, Horne and McDowell have joined Honegger and Mann in the starting lineup for each of the last 12 games.
BGSU is shooting 42.1 percent from the field and 70.2% from the free-throw line ... the Falcons have allowed opponents to shoot just 38.0% from the floor, and the foes have a 69.6% success rate from the stripe.
In MAC play, Mann leads the Falcons with 14.7 points and 8.1 rebounds per game, while Honegger is close behind, with 13.9 points and 7.1 boards ... Horne and Achter average 12.1 and 10.3 points per game, respectively ... BGSU has 68.9 points per game and a scoring margin of +11.6 in league action to date ... BG is shooting 41.7% in conference games, while allowing MAC opponents to shoot just 37.0% from the floor.
BGSU ended the 2003-04 season with a record of 21-10, and the Falcons finished the MAC campaign with an 11-5 slate ... BG tied for second in the West Division, then posted a pair of buzzer-beating wins in the league tourney to advance to the championship game ... head coach Curt Miller welcomed back 11 letterwinners, including three starters, from that team ... the returning starters, all sophomores, are Honegger, Mann and Thorburn ... Miller's team includes three seniors in Kelly Kapferer, Tene Lewis and Sakima Smith ... a pair of juniors, Jill Lause and McDowell, also return ... in addition to the three returning starters, the sophomore class consists of Amber Flynn, Julie Gompers and Horne ... Gompers has yet to see action this season due to injury ... two freshmen, guards Achter and Whitney Taylor, round out the Falcon squad.
SCOUTING NORTHERN ILLINOIS
Northern Illinois currently has an overall record of 7-19, and the Huskies check into Tuesday's game with a MAC record of 4-11 ... NIU is coming off Saturday's (Feb. 26) 61-59 win at Buffalo in the MAC Television Game of the Week, a win that snapped a nine-game losing streak ... seven of those nine losses came by single digits, including each of the last three ... the Huskies are 2-10 at home this season, including 1-6 in MAC games at the Convocation Center, but only one of those six league setbacks came by more than nine points ... sophomore guard Stephanie Raymond leads the Huskies in a plethora of categories, including scoring (15.2), rebounding (6.0 - tied for team lead), assists (3.2) and steals (3.8) ... Raymond has an even 100 steals this season, and leads the MAC by a wide margin ... another sophomore, center Kristin Wiener, is averaging 9.9 points and 5.0 rebounds per game, while junior forward Jamie Wilson had 9.2 points and is tied with Raymond for the team rebounding lead ... sophomore guard Mary Basic has 7.6 points per game, but has missed each of the last two games due to injury ... junior guard Keishonda Williamson averages 4.5 points per game ... senior guard Rachel Sillar (2.9 ppg) has joined Raymond, Wiener, Williamson and Wilson to comprise the starting lineup in each of the last two games for head coach Carol Hammerle ... a year ago, the Huskies had an overall record of 12-16, and finished with a 7-9 MAC mark ... Hammerle is 80-118 in her seventh season in DeKalb ... she has an overall head-coaching record of 536-344 in her 32nd year ... the school's athletics web site is www.niuhuskies.com.
THE SERIES
The Falcons trail Northern Illinois, 12-11, in the all-time series between the teams, and the Huskies have won five of the last seven meetings ... but, BGSU has won both the most recent meeting as well as the last meeting in DeKalb ... NIU leads the series, 6-5, since returning to the MAC prior to the 1997-98 season ... last month (Feb. 2, 2005), the Falcons downed the visiting Huskies, 80-44, at Anderson Arena ... a year ago, the road team emerged victorious in each game, as the Falcons captured a 66-58 decision in DeKalb (Jan. 10, 2004), while the Huskies won an epic, 102-97 contest the next month (Feb. 18, 2004) ... NIU is 7-3 in home games vs. the Falcons, and the teams have split the two meetings since the Huskies moved into the Convocation Center ... overall, four of the last six meetings have been decided by single digits.
THE FALCONS VS. THE MAC
The Falcons lead the all-time series with 11 of the 12 MAC opponents ... but, Northern Illinois is that 12th school ... the Huskies hold a slim 12-11 margin in the series with BGSU.
LAST TIME OUT
Senior Kelly Kapferer took an inbounds pass from freshman Kate Achter and converted a layup with 9.1 seconds left while being fouled, then made the ensuing free throw to give the Falcons a 72-71 win over arch-rival Toledo Saturday afternoon (Feb. 26) at Anderson Arena ... Kapferer's three-point play capped a furious comeback for the Falcons, who trailed by six points with just 1:22 left ... sophomores Carin Horne and Liz Honegger each hit three-point field goals as BG outscored the Rockets, 9-2, in the final 1:13 ... Horne led four Falcons in double digits with 17 points, while classmates Honegger and Ali Mann each had 15 ... Mann left the game with 8:18 left after suffering an injury on a layup attempt, and did not return ... Kapferer replaced Mann in the lineup for nearly all of that final 8:18 ... Achter had 10 points to round out BG's double-figure scorers ... for the Rockets, five players hit double digits, led by Danielle Bishop's 20 points ... Crystal Young added 13, while three teammates each had 11 ... leading by an 8-6 count, the Falcons held the visitors without a field goal for nearly four minutes, opening up a 17-7 lead ... but, UT came back to take the lead, as the final 5:53 of the half featured three ties and seven lead changes ... in the second half, the Falcons led for only 79 seconds of the game's final 13:34 ... a Rocket layup with the shot clock winding down gave UT a 69-63 lead with 1:22 left ... but, Horne quickly hit a trey ... after Young split a pair of free throws, Honegger drained a triple with 20 seconds left ... BG fouled Young again, and she again made 1-of-2 tosses, setting the stage for Kapferer's heroics.
FALCONS TOP LAST YEAR'S MAC WIN TOTAL
BGSU's win over Toledo lifts the Falcons' record to 12-3 in MAC play ... BG has surpassed last year's conference win total, with one game remaining ... last year's team went 11-5 and tied for second in the West Division, just a game out of first ... this year, of course, the Falcons currently lead the division.
KAPFERER KAPS KOMEBACK ON SENIOR DAY
On 'Senior Day' at Anderson Arena, senior co-captain Kelly Kapferer certainly left an impression on the 1,562 fans in attendance ... Kapferer, along with fellow seniors Tene Lewis and Sakima Smith, was recognized in ceremonies prior to the game ... then, Kapferer wowed the crowd by singing the National Anthem ... and, after playing two scoreless minutes in the first half, she had eight points in 12 minutes in the second half, including the game-winning three-point play with just 9.1 seconds left as BGSU downed arch-rival Toledo.
SENIOR LEADERSHIP
In the BGSU women's basketball program, as in many programs, the team's seniors usually are in the starting lineup on 'Senior Day' ... this year's Falcon seniors, however, did not start Saturday's game, by their request ... "They approached me and asked me not to change the starting lineup," said Falcon coach Curt Miller. "They said that this game was too important, and that just goes to show you what these seniors are all about. The team, and winning a championship, come over the glory of starting in their last home game."
SENIOR DAY SUCCESS
BGSU has enjoyed great success, for the most part, on 'Senior Day' over the last decade ... the Falcons have won the 'Senior Day' game in each of Curt Miller's four years, with wins over Eastern Michigan in back-to-back seasons before victories over Toledo both last year and this year ... BG has won the 'Senior Day' game in nine of the last 10 seasons.
MILESTONES FOR MILLER...
Falcon head coach Curt Miller picked up his 61st win in the Toledo game, and his career record stands at 61-52 heading into the NIU contest ... he is nine games over .500 for the first time in his tenure ... BGSU's win at Buffalo (Jan. 5) in this year's MAC opener moved Miller's overall mark above the .500 mark for the first time since his head-coaching debut in November of 2001 ... one month later, the win over Ohio (Feb. 5) put the Falcons' MAC record over .500 for the first time since Miller arrived ... Miller, in his fourth year at the BGSU helm, currently has a league ledger of 34-29, five wins over the break-even mark for the first time.
...AND FOR THE PROGRAM
BGSU has been one of the most successful teams in MAC history over the years, and Curt Miller and staff are in the process of restoring the Falcons' place among the perennial league contenders ... the win at Buffalo (Jan. 5) was the 250th conference victory in program history ... entering the NIU game, BGSU's all-time record in conference games is 261-135 (.659) ... only Toledo (267) has more MAC wins than the Falcons over the years.
BLOCK PARTY: HONEGGER NEAR THE TOP OF THE LISTS
Liz Honegger, just a sophomore, is rapidly moving up the BGSU lists for blocked shots ... she has tied one of her own single-season marks, and is just one block away from another ... Honegger, who tied the BG record with 50 blocks as a freshman, has 49 rejections this season to date ... she set a school mark with 27 rejections in MAC games a year ago, and has matched that record with one league game remaining ... Honegger is blocking shots at an even more prolific pace this winter ... she had 1.61 blocks per contest last winter, and - with 49 rejections through 26 games this season - currently averages 1.88 per game ... she has moved into sole possession of second place on the career list, with 99 blocks ... Angie Bonner (1986-90) holds the BG career record with 155 rejections ... Honegger is on pace to obliterate the BGSU career record for blocks per game.
TOPPING TOLEDO
After Saturday's win, the Falcons now lead Toledo, 33-25, in the all-time series between the teams, and BGSU has captured the last five meetings ... the Falcons now have an 18-7 mark in games played at Anderson Arena, and BG has won the last four home games vs. UT ... the Rockets' last win at Anderson came over six years ago, on Jan. 13, 1999.
More information (much more) can be found in the pdf version of these notes
